Bootcamp Week 5 - Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Staying Alive - chat here!

Those of us who have been here since the beginning may be finding the going tough now. You may have found that your weight loss has stopped, or you may even have put weight on <looks at self>

But hopefully you will also be enjoying the food now, and settling into this as a new way of eating. You may also have discovered the other benefits of low carbing - not being hungry, having better skin, sleeping better, fewer problems with conditions such as IBS or even asthma, fewer hot flushes (for those of us of a certain age ) etc.

A month in, whilst you should be more used to eating like this, you will also have discovered that it's not always possible to follow a strict low carb plan because Real Life has an irritating habit of getting in the way.

But that's an important lesson for us all to learn. There are two key things here:

First, it demonstrates very clearly that you have to plan what food you buy and how you're going to eat. For example, I do quite a bit of travelling for work - going to meetings by train all over the country and sometimes abroad. If I don't plan my meals, then I will end up eating something like a sandwich because that's all that is available. I went to a meeting on Friday where the client very kindly suggested that she order lunch for us. I knew that if I didn't say I was low carbing, then we would sit down to a plate of sandwiches. It feels awkward to have to ask for special food. But - if you had a medical condition that meant you couldn't eat wheat, there would be no issue with such a request, would there?

Dieting is often seen as a trivial issue, and we think it's silly to have to ask for special/different food. But think of the impact/implications of being overweight. High blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, etc etc. None of these is trivial.

So in these situations, plan ahead and ask for something that suits you.

If you're travelling - eat properly before you set off. Get to know what shops are available at any station you're travelling through - there are an increasing number of M&S Food shops at railway stations and service stations, where you can always buy cooked meats/fish, small portions of cheese and salads (there are one or two without pasta/rice/noodles/potatoes!)

Second, despite your best efforts, sometimes life seems determined to sabotage things. Even if you ask people to cater for you, few people really understand what a low carb diet is. This has happened to me twice since Friday! My client very kindly ordered me a salad for my lunch. I was provided with a bowl of lettuce - with no dressing. Presumably whoever made it was thinking "this person is on a diet, therefore it must have to be fat-free". On top of the lettuce was sweetcorn (one of the carbiest veg there is), a dollop of coleslaw - presumably with sugar in it, like most is - a huge mound of grated carrot, some sliced cooked chicken, cucumber and tomato.

At least I could eat the chicken! But it was very dry and so to make it palatable, easy to eat, I ended up eating more of the coleslaw than I intended. I also was in the embarrassing situation of having to leave a lot of the lunch that I had specially ordered.

And last night, at dinner with friends, I had again plucked up courage to tell them of my low carbing. Despite being reassured that the meal would be low carb-friendly, it was anything but. And it was (mostly) served plated up, so to not eat it was to have been very rude. And it was delicious, and I was hungry ...

But this is life. We have to get through these kind of occasions and accept that they may throw us off course briefly, but that this is a longer term process we are involved in. To use a horrible cliche, we are all on a journey here.

So if it happens to you - just accept it. Don't obsess about it. Avoid the scales for a while, and make sure you are super good for the following days. Don't use it as an excuse to jump off the wagon, for that way, surely, fatness lies!

Come and tell me how you're all getting along. How has life changed for you since we set off on this journey?!

My week 4 was not good - not put anything on but not lost anything either - and I have to confess to being very, very bad - far too many chocolate and biscuity things in the house following DS2's birthday.

I'm fairly well entrenched in the WOE now and am enjoying it - though think I'm not in ketosis at the mo due to the above.... DH is struggling with lunches for work though as he 'doesn't DO salad' so not sure what to take as he doesn't always get a break to get to the canteen.

Still am feeling healthier and enjoying the food - it suits me soooooo much better than a traditional 'low-fat' diet - love the butter/cream/mayo/fatty meat - all my thing so will definitely be carrying on.

No bread/pasta/potaoes/rice have passed my lips since bootcamp started - and although I'm only 4lbs down I feel so much better and have definitely lost inches.

So I'll raise a glass of wine (yes I know but can;t give up everything.....) and say thank you so much for your hard work in keeping it all going - and here's to some more success!

Week 5 already! Well it's the end of week 17 for me and as of this morning I am down 37.4lb. So I'm pleased, as my target was 2lb a week when I started this, and I'm only 1.1lb away from being halfway in my mission to lose 77lb.

I've been trying to set myself mini-targets, but get frustrated when I fail to reach them. So, from now on, every pound off, however long it takes, is going to be a pound nearer to my ultimate goal, however long that takes!

Sometimes it all seems a bit of a faff, and there's a lot of effort and organisation involved in this WOE; but I know that I'm eating good food, am rarely hungry, and it is working - just slooooowly

I'm definitely losing inches though as I have a pair of Fat Face trousers that fit me better than they did three years ago when I was 9lb lighter than I am now. Woohoo!

Well its Day 1 Week 1 for me, so looking forward to when I too can say Week 5. Loving all your advice and support BiWi, its your enthusiasm for this WOE that has given me the incentive to try it. One question, Total Yoghurt, am I allowed this on the two week strict version of Bootcamp ? Also could you point me to where I can find details of Bootcamp Lite, as would like to have the encouragement infront of me, of what I can add in, after the intial two weeks ? Thanks. Good luck everyone x

BIWI can I ask what is the difference between dairy and fat? (It's probably obvious, but not to me!)

I stopped eating yoghurt because I got sick a couple of times and wondered if I'd developed an intolerance to it. I can eat soya yoghurt without any bad reaction (but should I be eating it? I include it in my daily carb allowance.)

I've just been reading some other threads on the Weightloss Board - there is an awful lot of resistance to LC-ing, isn't there? As someone who's weight has yo-yo'd for years counting calories I can't see any reason NOT to LC if you need to lose/maintain weight. Good, healthy food and lots of it -yum! But then I don't drink (much) so I'm not freaked out by the need to drastically cut your alcohol consumption

The thing about dairy is to do with the lactose that it contains - which is a sugar - because many people are intolerant to it. I don't know why it would impede weight loss, but I have read posts from many people asserting this, and I know myself that I can't eat cream very often.

And yes, 'conventional' wisdom still has it that low carbing is somehow dangerous. Although the tide is definitely turning. Increasingly doctors are recommending it, other weight loss 'systems' are becoming more about low carb, etc.

Another quick question, having now read a load of the threads you are on BiWi ( so much brilliant info ! ), Carrots are on the list as 2.5g of carbs, but Ive read your comments where you say they are high carbs and should be avoided...or am I misunderstanding something ? Are they less carby if cooked vs raw ? Will add my details to your thread tomorrow and hope to see some encouraging results by the following week....am very pleased that I can have a BBQ tonight, with wheat free sausages, chicken thighs and salad, just brilliant

i'm still floating about on here. still not losing anything though . think i need to up my fat. have been reading about paleo recently too. very interesting. it's basically low carb rules but eating clean, no processed food and you can eat any fruit and veg. fruit is in moderation though. it brings up some very valid points about how the human species didn't have all the illnesses (diabetes, cancer, heart disease etc) that we do today until they started to farm and eat grains. there is also useful info on how grains have antinutrients that stop you absorbing vitamins etc.

biwi it is very true about how life can get in the way. I have to say though, that if i am forced to eat carbs because of no other option, i feel bloated and quite ill. that is enough to make me ask for options to suit me where i can. for instance, the other day I went into a local sausage shop. I asked the assistant what percentage of meat the sausages were, thinking they would be high percent meat as made by a butcher, and she said they were about 70 - 80%. I then asked if they used any fillers like bread or wheat and she said no, that they were very healthy and that no fat came out when cooked. she also then said that they were ok for people on weight watchers or those on special diets for their heart. (there goes the old low fat thing again!).

I said I wasn't bothered about the fat content, it was the carb content I was concerned about and she then kind of did and asked which we wanted.

Anyway, we bought some different types and after eating both lots, I felt bloated and ill. I think from that that I can deduce that there were carby fillers in them and I will not be buying from there again. My body has obviously got used to not eating grains anymore and doesn't like it when I do.

2bayumimum - the different carb counts reflect young and old carrots. Old carrots are lower in carbs. However, I know not why - and I have no idea how you tell if you're buying an old or a young carrot! Therefore I always assume that the carb count will be high, just to be on the safe side.

MmeLindor - welcome! Re breakfasts - eggs will be your friend. My usual breakfast is 1 or 2 boiled eggs. Sometimes I have them poached, occasionally scrambled, or as an omelette (which I usually make with cheese and mushrooms). When I have my early start at the gym on a Wednesday or Thursday - 6.45 am! - I don't really have time to faff around cooking, so I have some yoghurt. Total full fat Greek yoghurt is lovely.

There are plenty of other things you can eat - bacon and egg, smoked salmon with scrambled egg, low carb sausages - but actually the trick is not to think of breakfast as a meal that requires special food. Sometimes I have left overs from dinner the night before. A favourite is left over pureed swede and leeks, with a fried egg on top - a bit like bubble and squeak!

I have discovered the Oopsie Rolls on the recipe thread. ARe they ok for now? I think my biggest issue will be missing bread. Although I have to admit that it will be easier here cause Mum buys cheap yukky bread.

Mme - Oopsie rolls are, on the face of it, OK. But - they use Splenda, which we're trying to avoid. And it's a good idea to try and get used to a way of eating without a bread substitute - the idea of Bootcamp is to break the addiction/reliance on carb-heavy foods. Why not try the two weeks of Bootcamp without?

Ha ha ha ha at the thread title I am certainly staying alive for the time being, but having a massive flare up of my lupus symptoms.

Needless to say since getting out of hospital on Friday, and feeling like crap, my diet has been the last thing on my mind and a certain amount of comfort eating has been going on.

But...I have managed to maintain, so it's not as desperate as I thought.

Back on track tomorrow, and hopefully I'll get into the rheumy clinic for a steroid shot. Needless to say cardiology didn't get in touch with my Rheumatologist, and sent me home saying call them on Monday after (one particular registrar) lecturing me over taking drugs when not required when I asked them if they could arrange the steroids for me. If I hadn't gone to A&E, I would probably have been sorted on Friday at my own clinic. Hey ho!

I'm now worrying about work as I've already had a disciplinary meeting over the number of absences I've had recently.

i don't put splenda in oopsies and but they can stall me so I think (for me anyway) it's the cream cheese that's a problem

chicken pizza for supper (chicken breast baked in a spoonful of tomato sauce with grated cheddar on top) with lots of salad

re breakfast I have two eggs usually (sometimes with two rashers of bacon) - scrambled or fried with butter. i leave for work at 6am so eat this at 5.45 - I know many can't stomach food at this time but I'm used to it after several years of early starts. importantly for me, i find it really takes no longer to cook a couple of eggs than it does to make toast or porridge